Is an Executor Required to be a US Citizen?
I recently received a phone call from someone whose wife was not a US Citizen. The caller wondered whether his wife could nevertheless serve as an executor of his Will.
There is no statutory restriction in Texas that prevents a non-citizen from serving as an executor or administrator of an estate. The statutes only restrict those who are:
- incapacitated;
- a felon, unless he or she has been pardoned or has had his or her civil rights restored;
- a nonresident of Texas who has not appointed a resident agent to accept service of process in all actions or proceedings with respect to the estate; or had that appointment filed with the court;
- a corporation not authorized to act as a fiduciary in Texas; or
- a person whom the court finds unsuitable.
The term “unsuitable” is not defined; rather, a trial judge has the discretion to determine suitability based on unique facts and circumstances of each case.
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